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GOURMET NEWS JULY 2018 www.gourmetnews.com Supplier News SUPPLIER NEWS 1 4 BRIEFS Indulgent Ice Creams Sport Sophisticated Flavors BY LORRIE BAUMANN Sophisticated flavors, clean labels and high- quality ingredients are persuading Millen- nial foodies that ice cream isn't a pleasure they need to leave behind with their child- hoods. At this year's International Dairy Foods Association's annual Innovative Ice Cream Flavor Competition in Fort Myers, Florida, it was fun and fruity flavors that took top prizes. Signature RESERVE Brazilian Guava Cheesecake Ice Cream, entered by Albert- sons Companies; Spicy Mango Raspberry Fiesta Ice Cream, submitted by SensoryEf- fects Flavor Systems; and the Pomegranate and Sweet Potato Medley Bar, submitted by Perry's Ice Cream Company, Inc. were named the most innovative ice cream prod- ucts at the competition. The competition, held each year during IDFA's Ice Cream Technology Conference, showcases the cre- ativity of U.S. ice cream makers and flavor- ings suppliers and captures upcoming flavor trends in the ice cream and frozen dessert industry. "Fruit was the name of the game in this year's contest, and contestants showed off their expert ability to pair fresh, tropical fruits with almost anything, including spices, vegetables and decadent desserts," said Cary Frye, IDFA Senior Vice President of Regulatory Affairs. "Ice creams featuring cookie doughs and butters, as well as salty nuts, were also highly favored flavors in this year's lineup." The Albertsons Companies entry earned first place in the most innovative ice cream flavor category. It is a sweet-and-sour, super-premium cheesecake ice cream balanced with ribbons of tart guava puree and contains bites of cheesecake crust pieces. Spicy Mango Raspberry Fi- esta Ice Cream was named the most innovative proto- type flavor. It is a mango and red-pepper ice cream with a sweet swirl of rasp- berry. Perry's Ice Cream's Sweet Potato Medley Bar took top honors in the most innovative novelty category. It's a frozen dessert bar made with real fruit and vegetable juice. This year's conference set records for number of entries in the competition, as well as attendance. More than 160 ice cream industry professionals attended the event, where they tasted, judged and se- lected the winners from a record total of 40 flavor entries. The best ice cream tasted by this year's sofi™ Award judges was Humphry Slo- combe's Black Sesame. It's one of a dizzying array of flavors offered by San Francisco, California, entrepreneurs Jake Godby and Sean Vahey, co-Founders of Humphry Slo- combe. Godby, a pastry chef by training, is also the company's Chef, while Vahey, who has a background in food and beverage management, also serves as its Marketing Director. The packaging for Humphry Slocombe's retail pints includes a little of Godby and Vahey's story, and there's a quote on every carton. "It's about staying true to our- selves....You're still getting that experi- ence. It doesn't get lost in transla- tion," Vahey says. "Of course it's super fun to come into our store, but we want you to have that when you pick up a pint of our ice cream too. At the end of the day, it's about the ice cream. It's a unique high quality ice cream that we want you to remember." The Black Sesame flavor that won this year's gold sofi Award includes toasted black sesame seeds with sesame oil added to amp up the flavor even more. The rest of the current lineup includes flavors like POG Sorbet, which combines passion fruit, orange and guava in a nondairy sorbet; Matchadoodle, an ice cream made with green tea from Kyoto and snickerdoodle cookies made in- house; Blueberry Boy Bait, which offers brown sugar streusel stirred into a blue- berry ice cream and Dirty Chai, a chai ice cream with espresso in it. The adult-ori- ented flavors were Godby's idea, Vahey says. "We didn't nec- essarily pigeonhole it as ice cream for adults," he said. "We just happen to have adult tastes." That same combination of adult tastes and training as a pastry chef informs the ice cream sandwiches made by Too Cool Chix. The New York City-based company is led by CEO Sharon Monahan and her co- Founder Michele Elmer, a pastry chef trained by the Culinary Institute of Amer- ica. "She really has pulled from the flavors she discovered being a chef," Monahan said. The Beauty Bar, one of her company's flagship products, is made from a lavender ice cream and lemon cookies. "It's defi- nitely a customer favorite," Monahan said. I Dream In Chocolate depends on choco- late from Hispaniola in an indulgent small- batch chocolate ice cream paired with a dark chocolate cookie. The entire line is built on high-quality ingredients, all natural and locally sourced, with organic ingredients used when possi- ble. The ice cream is made with locally sourced milk, cream and cage free eggs – no gums are added; it's s t a b i l i z e d with egg yolks. The l a v e n d e r and vanilla are organic, and the cocoa is fair trade. "The clean label thing was there from the begin- ning," Monahan said. "We took a look at what's in a lot of other ice cream brands and said we'd like to see what we can do with cleaner ingredients. Our sandwiches have one tenth the amount of sugar as some of the other leading brands and one fourth of the sodium, so you really taste the flavors instead of just the sugar." Tea-rrific! Ice Cream, which won the bronze sofi Award in this year's competi- tion, also emphasizes a clean ingredient deck in its super-premium ice creams in- fused with freshly brewed loose leaf and herbal teas. Masala Chai, the flavor that won this year's sofi Award, is made from a freshly brewed blend of Assam black tea, rooibos herbal tea, cardamom, ginger, clove, and several other spices and pepper- corns. The chai is then added to a sweet cream base along with an extra helping of Tea-rrific!'s own mix of spices for good measure and balance. In 2015, the company's Chamomile flavor was a finalist in the sofi competition. For this flavor, Tea-Riffic! brews Egyptian chamomile flowers, which offer notes of apple and honey. The floral notes of this caf- feine-free herbal tea, which is known for its soothing effects, combine perfectly with a luscious sweet cream base to create the fla- vor that won over the judges. "We are very excited to be once again recognized by the sofi judges," said Souvannee Leite, CEO and co-Founder of Tea-rrific! Ice Cream, "It is truly wonderful when those who see and sample the best of the best on a regular basis choose your product as one that stands out among our many worthy peers." GN Land O'Lakes, Inc. Announces CEO Retirement Chris Policinski will retire as Land O'Lakes President and Chief Executive Officer, effective June 30, 2018. Policinski was appointed President and CEO of the Fortune 216 farmer-owned cooperative in 2005. Policinski's tenure has been marked by significant growth in the size of the company which is twice the size today than it was when he assumed leadership nearly 13 years ago. In addition, Policinski oversaw global expansion in recent years with joint ventures in both South Africa and Kenya, and the biggest merger in the company's history with United Suppliers in 2016. In addition, Policinski has championed Land O'Lakes' continued investment in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, community in which the company is headquartered. Ferrero to Open Nutella Cafe in New York City Ferrero has announced it will be opening a Nutella Cafe near Union Square in Manhattan, by the end of the year. Nutella Cafe New York will feature a Nutella-inspired cafe menu and specialty espresso beverages. The first Nutella Cafe opened on May 31, 2017 in Chicago. Sabra to support Virginia State University Urban Ag As an extension of its Plants with a Purpose program, Sabra Dipping Company, LLC (Sabra) will partner with Virginia State University (VSU) to assist in the development of an educational urban garden at Summerseat. The Summerseat Urban Garden Project will transform a 2.2-acre historic land parcel into a food and agricultural hub designed to address food security issues within local schools and communities, enhance nutrition and food education, and bring people together. Sabra's Plants with a Purpose initiative was launched as a pilot in late 2016 to address the needs of communities living in food deserts. Richmond, Virginia, has been called the largest "food desert" in America. In addition to the Summerseat collaboration, Sabra is providing tuition assistance for students of VSU's Urban Agriculture Certification Course, which aims to increase competence and marketability for a career in urban agriculture. Students will have an opportunity to apply their skills in Sabra's 340- square foot employee workshare garden installed on the Sabra campus in Colonial Heights, Virginia. NCA CEO Addresses World Chocolate Leaders in Switzerland John Downs, president and CEO of the National Confectioners Association, spoke at the annual CHOCOVISION conference in Davos, Switzerland. In his speech to senior leadership in the chocolate industry, Downs addressed the future of confectionery. "For me, meetings like CHOCOVISION underscore the importance of private/public partnerships, for transparency in our deeds and actions, and for on-going dialogue as we address any number of issues that impact the chocolate category," Downs said. "Since my arrival at NCA four years ago, I have maintained a comprehensive list of domestic and global topics that have the potential to disrupt – or fundamentally change – the confectionery business in the U.S. No matter how this list changes and shifts, we know our category will continue to be relevant and grow."

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